Smile, It's Summer
by Hakimu
Summary: A really cheesy Shadouge story about summer love. If you love fluffy romance, you'll love this to bits.


A very familiar white bat named Rouge was walking down the street, hoping to arrive at her luxurious apartment. Today was one of her many days off from work as a spy for the government. She usually spent her spare time hunting for priceless jewels and gems, but today, she just wasn't in the mood.

The setting sun gleamed upon her tan skin as she stopped in thought. She subconsciously scratched her arm and paused upon touching a cold metal object. The bat looked down to see a golden colored ring around her wrist. Rouge gazed at the ring with calculating blue eyes as she remembered how she had received the ring.

oOo

_Rouge and four others stood in the main room of the Space Colony Ark, waiting for Sonic and Shadow to return from fighting the Final Hazard. Finally, the gray metal doors buzzed and opened to reveal a determined looking blue hedgehog looking back at her. Unable to hold back, she spoke her mind the second the doors quieted._

_"Where is Shadow?"_

_Sonic looked downwards sadly before shaking his head and approaching the bat. He handed her one of the golden bracelets that Shadow removed from his gloves before falling to earth. Rouge instantly realized what had happened. Shadow had sacrificed himself to save the entire world, despite Professor Gerald programming him to destroy the earth. He died for the very thing he hated: humanity. She turned to Sonic and shared her thoughts with him._

_"Do really think the professor created him – Shadow – to carry out the revenge on all of those who live here on earth?"_

_Sonic, being the speedster he is, wasting no second to respond. "He was what he was. A brave and heroic hedgehog who gave his life to save this planet. Shadow the Hedgehog." Sonic walked up to the glass and stared at the planet earth below them._

_"I guess you're right." _

_Rouge stared at the ring, wishing it didn't have to end like this. She had just met Shadow, and even though they didn't get along at first, they started to connect when Shadow saved her as well as when Rouge revealed that Shadow might not have been the ultimate life form._

_"So, what's next for you, Rouge? Off again to find those jewels you love so much?" Rouge turned to see her ex-rival, Knuckles, casually approach her. Once their rivalry had receded, Rouge felt a connection with the red echidna as well; determination was always a trait she admired. And due to his duty as guardian of the Master Emerald, Knuckles was full of it._

_Rouge waved her hand dismissively. "Nah, I think I'm going to give up this line of work. Too much work for too little pay." Lies. They both knew she was lying. Rouge sighed and looked at the bracelet in her hands. "Anyway, I've got something better than jewels that I'm thinking about right now." She tightened her grip on Shadow's ring and smiled. "It'll all work out. You'll see."_

_"If you say so."_

_Of course, Rouge had been right. She went against her word and resumed treasure hunting again. Three months later, Rouge found Shadow in a stasis pod during a treasure hunt in Eggman's base. He had no memory of anything other than his own name. _

_Shadow has come a long way since that day._

oOo

Shadow. Where was he now? Rouge hadn't seen him in almost a week. She sighed angrily and resumed walking home. She would think her best friend would check in with her every once in a while!

Still traveling to her apartment, she could not stop thinking about the black and red hedgehog. Hopes of his safety soared her mind compulsively. Nearing desperation, she pulled a silver phone embedded with purple jewels out of a pocket of her tan suede shorts. She pressed number eight on her speed dial.

Instead of being greeted with the customary dialing tone, Rouge heard beeping sounds of various lengths and pitches. This was because she was not calling a phone, but rather a robot. And not just any robot, at that; she was calling her other best friend, E-123 Omega.

"Yes, Rouge? Do you need anything?" asked Omega in his false, metallic voice.

"Hi, Omega. What's up with you?"

There was silence on the other end until the machine spoke again. "I fail to understand your words. There is no 'up' with me. I am down, on the ground, because of gravity."

The huntress shook her head and laughed into the receiver of her glamorous phone. "No, Omega, it's slang. I swear, one day I'm going to download Urban Dictionary into your systems. What I meant to say is..." the bat paused to find the correct phrase, "...how are you?"

"I am well. I blew up one of Eggman's robots yesterday. I quite enjoy destroying things. How are you, Rogue?"

"I'm fine. Have you heard from Shadow lately?"

"No, but I do know that GUN has assigned him to a mission in space. He should have returned.. hold on a moment." Omega was cut off as all Rouge could hear over the phone was beeping. She continued to walk home while waiting for the robot to answer her.

"He should have arrived here twenty minutes ago. Do you wish to see him?"

"Yes," replied the bat as she walked up the stairs of her apartment complex. "Would you be a dear and send him to my place?"

"Understood, Rouge. Talk to you later." The robot ended their conversation. Rouge put her phone away and entered her penthouse apartment.

She flicked the lights and admired her beautiful home. All of her furniture was velvet, and was either dark red or purple. Her décor consisted mainly of jewels secured under nearly impenetrable glass boxes. She often claimed that all of the world's jewels were hers, and her home seemed to prove it.

A brilliant green light flooded her room. This would have startled any other person, but Rouge was long used to the unconventional methods her best friend often used to enter homes. She smiled at the figure of Shadow, a black and red hedgehog who was now standing on her coffee table.

"Hello, Shadow. You always seem to teleport in top of my furniture."

"I do that for a reason," said the dark hedgehog as he leapt from the table onto Rouge's mauve couch, sending her pillows flying onto the floor.

Rouge cried out in annoyance as she picked up the pillows and hummed them at her friend. This had little effect, however, since the bat's strength lies in her legs rather than her arms.

"Shadow, don't you have any manners?"

"Look who's talking, jewel thief."

Rouge laughed at his joke. She always found Shadow's bluntness to be quite humorous.

"So, Rouge, Omega sent me here. Is everything okay?" Speaking of bluntness, Shadow got right to business with her.

"Oh, nothing is wrong at all. I don't hear from you for a week, and I am perfectly fine."

"I was away on a mission in space."

"You could have a least given me a heads up." She placed her hands on her round hips. "Besides, I know you don't like space." She subconsciously touched his golden ring again.

Shadow sat up on the couch, suddenly immensely interested in his friend's words. "What makes you say that?"

Rouge blinked her eyelids twice in surprise. "It's obvious, Shadow."

The ebony hedgehog scoffed. "Since when?" 

oOo

_Rouge, Shadow, and Omega were each grinding at high speeds upon the some sky rails in Eggman's fleet of airships. They were hunting down Eggman to find out why Shadow had no memory of himself and how he survived the fall to earth. Omega was with them at first to destroy Eggman, but once he and Shadow bonded, his motives changed to match Shadow's._

_The air pressure made it slightly difficult for the bat to breathe, showing her how high up they were. She peeked down and saw hoards of fluffy white clouds underneath her._

_"We're flying very high. We might even be on the edge of space!" she called._

_Omega kept on riding, unfazed by the comment. However, Shadow's expression faltered from its usual calmness for a few moments._

_"Space? Did you say SPACE?" he cried._

_Rouge said nothing, and wondered if Shadow still retained some of his memories before his fall. She let a smile play upon her lips, hopeful_.

oOo

Shadow just stared at the ground. "It's true. I dislike space."

Rouge walked over and sat next to her darker furred companion. "Aw, c'mon Shadow, smile! You're back on earth now!"

"Yes. The great planet of Earth," said Shadow half-heartedly.

"You know you love it here; especially now since it is summer!"

"What does summer have to do with anything? It's just like all of the other seasons but warmer. There's nothing special about summer."

Rouge's ears perked. "Oh? Then I'll have to show you."

Shadow's dull face briefly lit with surprise as his friend pulled him off of the couch and threw him out of the door. Rouge quickly locked her apartment and grasped Shadow's hand tightly.

"Let me show you what you've missed on earth. Allow me to give you to the full summer experience. Can you chaos control us to the park?"

"Why, Rouge. Why," he muttered as he played along with her antics. "Chaos Control."

The couple appeared in the middle of Station Square Park. By now the sun had fully set and young darkness was seeping into the park. Younger children and grandparents were being traded in for teenagers and young adults.

Rouge snapped her fingers in front of Shadow and motioned to two lone wooden swings under an elm tree, near a messy sandbox.

"No way," said Shadow. "The Ultimate Life-form does not play on children's equipment."

"Oh, just one time won't kill you. Besides, who's going to see you? You blend in with the night with your black fur."

The sullen hedgehog was about to refuse the request again when he found himself at a loss for words. He looked at Rouge's begging feautures and noticed that she looked different than usual. The moonlight lit up her white fur for him, allowing him to see what he previously couldn't in the bat's dimly lit apartment. He saw that she was not wearing any makeup save for a little mascara. As for her outfit, she wore tan shorts paired with a plain white T-shirt and a black vest. The only other thing she was wearing was a small heart pendant on her neck (no doubt to keep with her usual heart theme) and black ankle boots. She looked so... simple. Shadow realized that he preferred her that way.

"Okay, Rouge. But only for a minute, alright?"

Her sly smile broke into a full-out grin. "Race ya," she said before sprinting to the swings.

The hedgehog gave her a two second head start before zipping over to the swings and sitting one of them. Rouge still had quite a few feet to go. She noticed her defeat frowned angrily.

"You could have gone a little easy on me, Shadow!" she scolded.

"I did. I gave you a two second head start." Shadow used his feet to kick off and start to swing. "So, the great treasure huntress Rouge likes to play on children's toys? You've gone soft."

"Huh," said Rouge as she went to go sit on the other swing. Before she could, a brown rabbit female ran up to her and sat on her swing. She was a young teenager, around thirteen or fourteen years old.

"Ha, you snooze you lose," she taunted her.

Rouge folded her arms and cocked her hips. "Beat it kid; isn't it past your curfew?"

"No. I do what I want."

"Well, so do I." Rouge stepped forward, grabbed the girl by his red shirt and flung her off of the swing. She used so much force that the kid flew off of the swing and into the sandbox. Rouge laughed as she took her rightful spot on the swing. The rabbit got up and quickly ran away, obviously trying to hide the fact that she was embarrassed.

"I stand corrected," said Shadow, who was swinging now to the full height of the swing. He was smiling, much to Rouge's excitement.

"Shadow, are you actually smiling?" asked the bat once she was able to get the swing to go to its full height.

"No. I was laughing at that little brat getting flung off of the swing."

"Oh, well, I guess that's a start," remarked Rouge.

The duo swung together in silence for around a minute until Shadow spoke his mind. "What is the point of this?"

"This," said Rouge. She completed two more swings before jumping off at the height of her third swing. She used her wings to achieve extra height as she quickly did three front-flips before landing and striking an impressive pose. "Top that, Mr. Ultimate."

Shadow raised his eyebrows at his female companion, acknowledging and accepting her challenge. The hedgehog used his air shoes to get some extra boost and flung himself off of the swing at the height of its arc. He did a slow back flip, landed on his hands, and did a back handspring into the swing again. From there he kicked off again and powerfully pushed the swing. This time he jumped off of the swing as it was going backwards and grabbed the top beam of the swing as he jumped off. He propelled his body one... two... three times around the beam before flying off and plummeting towards the ground in a downward spiral. He stuck the landing and struck an epic pose in front of Rouge.

"Show off!" she yelled.

"You just can't handle my awesomeness."

Rouge pursed her lips at him, clearly impressed. Shadow was amazing. She was too mesmerized to think of a more intricate word. He was just... amazing.

Shadow noticed Rouge staring at him and proceeded to let her absorb his display of moves. He sat back down on the swing and slowly rocked back and forth. His red eyes fixated on the brilliant pearly moon ahead of them. Somehow, GUN had been able to repair the moon since Eggman (and he and Rouge, to an extent) blew it up almost a year ago. He remembered just how it happened, and how both he and Rouge were involved.

oOo

_Shadow and Rouge tumbled onto the ARK after a close call inside Security Hall. The daring white bat had gotten herself locked inside the safe containing the emeralds, despite her self-proclaimed title as 'The World's Greatest Jewel Thief'. The island was set to explode, and Shadow and Rouge made it out seconds before the bomb detonated. Now on the ARK, Rouge had just gone to check in with Eggman, while Shadow stood staring at the Earth below him, surrounded by thoughts pertaining to what just happened. He didn't want to save Rouge. He didn't care for her. She was just a stranger. He only saved her because she reminded him of a dear old friend... _

_"Shadow, what do you think it's like on Earth?" _

_Shadow was being addressed by his best friend Maria Robotnik. She was a young blonde girl who lived on the ARK because of her illness. Professor Gerald was her grandfather, technically making her Shadow's niece. The Ultimate Life form befriended her just days after his creation, and they have been inseparable ever since. Shadow cared immensely for the girl and would do anything for her._

_Shadow responded, "The professor said his life's work was dedicated to all of those who live down there. He once told that the reason for existence was making happy through the power of science."_

_"Shadow..." Maria said worriedly. The reason that Shadow was created was to maintain harmony and happiness on earth, but Shadow did not know this at this point. Maria always tried her best to show Shadow that he still has value and dignity just like everyone else, despite him being a creation. Still, Shadow was very intelligent and frequently questioned the motives behind his creation._

_"Maria, I just don't know anything anymore. I often wonder why I was created. What my purpose is for being here. Maybe if I go down there I.. I will find the answers. Maybe." _

_Maria..._

_"Why so melancholy?" Shadow turned his head to see Rouge prance up to him with a look of pride and gratitude. He looked away, hoping that she would give up hopes of conversing with him and leave, but this was not the case. "That was so unexpected, so unlike you Shadow, to come and rescue me. But your ability to us the chaos control certainly comes in handy."_

_Shadow didn't hesitate to call her bluff. "Hmm, you know, I didn't come to save you. I came back for the chaos emeralds." Rouge's ears perked. He was lying. He had to be. If Shadow can use chaos control, he must know a lot about the chaos emeralds. Surely he knows that they are indestructible, and would have survived the pending explosion._

_"Yeah, yeah. But then again, that's not the whole story, is it?" Shadow was speechless. Could she tell something was troubling him? _

_His thoughts dissipated as his boss, Eggman, walked through the doors and coughed to get his and Rouge's attentions. "Everything is ready to go!"_

_Rouge's eyes widened. "Are you sure?" Surely they weren't going to carry out their plans right now! She, Eggman, and Shadow had all planned to use the Eclipse cannon to destroy half of the moon once they had obtained all seven chaos emeralds. They, or at least Eggman, wanted to show the world that were a viable threat with such a weapon, forcing all of the world's leaders to cater to his every whim. "We only have six of the seven chaos emeralds, you know!"_

_Shadow began to angrily walk into the canon's core. "That's more than enough for the demonstration! So let's get this show on the road!" The three of them walked off to the canon, which was aimed at the moon and ready to fire. The world was theirs..._

oOo

Shadow suddenly felt a huge pang of guilt. He remembered how Maria had always wished to see earth along with him. And now he was here, thanks to her sacrifice, enjoying the summer without her. Shadow stood up abruptly. His sudden change in temperament did not go unnoticed. Rouge, who was lost in a world of bliss, flew back to reality upon seeing the dark hedgehog rise.

"Rouge, I think we should go."

"Why? I was just having fun... and I know YOU were, too."

"We should go," Shadow repeated.

"What's wrong?" asked Rouge. A slight bit of concern was nibbling at her heart.

"It's nothing. Let's go."

"I am not moving from where I stand until you tell me what is bothering you."

Shadow grumbled and sat back down on the swing. Rouge was so assertive. He loved and hated that about her. "I... I feel guilty. Maria and I, we used to always express our desires to come to Earth and see the wonders it holds. It looked so beautiful from the ARK. Our wish to come to Earth was what caused us to bond."

"So, why do you feel guilty?" asked Rouge, who was now kneeling at the feet of her best friend, listing and understanding. She was even expressing sympathy for her friend, an emotion she usually stayed away from.

"I'm here because of her and she is dead because of me."

"Shadow, I thought you said that you put your past behind you? You know her death wasn't your fault."

"I know and accept that. I still can't shake the feeling, though."

Rouge sighed. "Oh, Shadow. Didn't Maria want you to be happy? Didn't she want to you to fight for the happiness of others in the world?"

"Yes."

"Then why do you feel guilty? You are fulfilling her promise! You've done a lot of good for the world."

"I suppose," said Shadow, getting back into his usual state. "You're right."

"Uuuuugh!" cried Rouge. She stood up and began pulling on her best friend's arm. "We were just having fun! But you had to go and flip your emo switch on."

"Hmph," Shadow muttered. "Whatever you say."

Rouge desperately looked around the park before setting her aqua eyes on a small sign. "I know what will cheer you up! Ice cream!"

Shadow just looked at her as he silently dismounted the swing. "Ice cream?"

"Yeah. Good stuff. Let's go!"

"Actually, I've never had ice cream before."

Rouge stopped in her tracks. "Never? I guess this will be a night to remember for you. I'll start you off with a beginner flavor, like Vanilla or Chocolate."

The hedgehog said nothing as Rouge dragged him to a small ice cream stand a little ways from the swings.

"Hi, what flavors do you have?" asked Rouge nicely, batting her eyelashes.

"We have vanilla, chocolate, and mint."

"Oh, yay!" Rouge smiled softly and flipped her hair. "I'll have a scoop of mint, and he'll have a scoop of vanilla."

The vendor smiled at them – but more so at Rouge - and handed each of them a plastic cup and spoon filled with the frosty snack.

"How much is this?" asked Rouge, looking the vendor right in the eyes and pursing her lips.

"Actually, for a lovely lady such as yourself and her... _friend_, it's on the house. Just promise me you'll come back again soon."

Rouge giggled and twirled her hair. "Mmkay," she said in a high pitched voice. She winked at the vendor before walking away with a very bewildered Shadow right behind her.

Once they were back at the swings, Rouge spoke up. "And that is how you get free ice cream."

Shadow let out a small and haughty laugh as he and Rouge sat back on their swings. "You don't plan on seeing him again, do you?"

"Nope. I actually didn't think it would work since you were with me, but he bought all of my signals. Ha, what an idiot."

Rouge took a bite of her light green ice cream and turned to her friend. "Did you try yours yet?"

"No," said Shadow as he stared at the frosty white snack in front of him.

"Do it!" yelled Rouge impatiently.

Shadow lifted his spoon and put a small sample of the ice cream into his mouth. An expression of wonder crossed his face before going back for an even bigger bite. "Woah, this is some good stuff."

Rouge laughed happily. Her laughter caused the stoic hedgehog to smile a bit. He had to admit, there was something about her laughter. It was almost contagious.

"Can I try yours, too?" asked Shadow casually.

That made the enthusiastic bat laugh even more. "You like it that much? Here." She held her cup of mint ice cream over to Shadow, who took decent sized sample and brought it to his lips. He smiled just a little before speaking.

"Wow, that's... minty. I like it. But Vanilla is still better, in my opinion." He then proceeded to shovel the rest of the dessert into his mouth. A few seconds passed before he clutched his head in pain. "Augh! What the hell?"

Rouge doubled over in laughter. "Brain freeze. That's what happens when you ingest cold food too quickly."

Shadow laughed a little. "Whatever. I'll take it like a man."

Rouge laughed softly as she continued to eat her ice cream and swing. The pair both sat in peaceful silence, absorbed in their thoughts. Little did they know, they were each thinking of the other.

After they finished their snack, Rouge turned to Shadow with a mysterious grin on her face. "Shadow? Why don't we go somewhere new?"

"No, Rouge, we are not going jewel hunting," the hedgehog pressed.

Rouge's large white ears flattened against her head. "I wasn't going to suggest that! I wanted to see if you wanted to go to the beach with me."

"But it's night time. What will be there for us at the beach?"

The frustrated heroine sighed and flopped down on her back, feeling the grass tickle her back. For someone so "ultimate", Shadow could be so dense sometimes. "Shadow, that's the point. The beach is beautiful at night. Just trust me, alright?"

"Alright," muttered Shadow as he pulled out his (DAMN fourth) sparkly green chaos emerald and hoisted Rouge up from the ground. The huntress let out a small cry of surprise; she did not expect Shadow to agree with her, much less physically lift her off of the ground. "Chaos Control."

Quick as a flash, the duo found themselves lying in the damp sand of Emerald Beach instead of the soft grass of the park. The almost-black ocean rippled beams of silver where the moon chose to shine its opaque light. It was breathtaking. Shadow allowed himself to lie in the sand, absorbing the beauty of the earth. He could hear the waves gently crash onto the sand, generating refreshing, salty air that canceled out the summer heat.

Rouge, however, sat up and giggled while slipping off her black leather boots. She carelessly tossed them to the side, not having a care in the world, and she glanced over at her partner. A smile crept upon her lips as she realized that he was happy... really and truly happy. When was the last time she saw him like that? Never.

Shadow felt something graze his foot, alerting his senses and making him jump up to see what was going on. He frowned when he saw that Rouge was taking off his red and white air skates that he passed as shoes. "What do you think you are doing?"

"What does it look like?" she remarked playfully.

"You are taking off my shoes." He allowed himself to glance at the bat's bare feet. "And you took yours off as well. Are we going swimming?"

"Mmm, something like that," whispered Rouge as she threw his shoes next to hers in a pile. Shadow had no time to question her motives, as Rouge was nearly dragging him to the dark waters in front of them. The ocean's water was up to their knees, with the high waves licking at their waists. Rouge's shorts were soaked, and her shirt was wet on the bottom. Rouge pointed to the moonlight reflected waters, the very scene that Shadow was admiring moments before. "Isn't it gorgeous?"

A warm, prickly sensation flew up the hedgehog's right arm. He looked down to see Rouge's hand lightly brushing against his. He thought it was merely an accident, but when Rouge did it again, he knew the action was purposeful. Shadow stood there watching Rouge bump his hand until the feisty female took charge and grabbed Shadow's hand herself.

Rouge cleared her throat. "Shadow, when a girl repeatedly bumps your hand with hers, it means she wants you to hold her hand."

"Oh," responded Shadow. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Rouge frown slightly. He grew upset knowing that he was the cause of it. Thoughts and worries filled his brain.

_Ugh, why must I be so clueless? It's not my fault I can't pick up Rouge's hints. I'm an artificial life form. I was created; I did not grow up. Therefore, I did not experience puberty. That is why I don't know what to do in situations like this. Wait a minute... situations like this? What's going on?_

Shadow's thoughts were washed out as a layer of salty water surrounded his body. Instinctively, his grasp on Rouge's hand tightened. He didn't want to lose her. As his bare black feet touched the sand below once again, he steadied himself up and Rouge as well. She must have accidentally swallowed some sea water because she was coughing. Both of them were thoroughly soaked.

"Are you alright? What happened?" asked Shadow as he made sure Rouge was alright. Embarrassingly enough, since Rouge was wearing a white shirt, the water had rendered her top completely see-through, showing the light purple bra she had on underneath. Shadow couldn't help but observe her breasts. He had to admit, they were quite nice.

"Checking out the goods, eh, Shadow?" said Rouge with a snort. "I guess I chose the wrong color shirt today. Anyway, a huge wave hit us and knocked us over. You reacted pretty fast, considering you were totally spaced out."

"Hmph. I'll take that as a compliment," responded Shadow with a warm smile.

"You're so... masculine," she whispered seductively. She placed herself right in front of Shadow and provocatively rubbed her finger up his muscular arm as she spoke. Shadow wanted to tell her to cut it out; she always flirted with him and every other man around and he was used to it. But this time was different. He actually... liked it? Rouge paused and kept her finger on Shadow's arm, awaiting a response from the anti-heroic hedgehog. Little did she know that she was causing questions to fly into his mind faster than the speed of sound.

_What is she doing? Why am I liking this? What's going on? Why is she looking at me like that? Why does she keep glancing at my lips?_

"You look like you need another lesson, Shadow," said Rouge, breaking the silence. "When a girl looks at your lips a lot, it means she wants this."

Rouge grabbed him by the shoulders and firmly kissed him on the lips. Shadow objected for a fraction of a second until temptation got the better of him. Hormones that he never knew he had surged through his veins, giving him urges that he knew were wrong but felt so right. As this change happed to Shadow, he took over Rouge to become the dominant of the pair.

The bat found herself breaking away from Shadow after only a minute, panting for breath. "Wow," she gasped. "Shadow... where did... THAT come from?"

Shadow simply shrugged. "I am the Ultimate." Then it hit him. He and Rouge had just _kissed_. Kissed. KISSED. K-I-S-S-E-D. How could he let that happen? They were best friends, teammates, business partners. What would the Commander think? What would Omega think? What would _Maria_ think?

"Rouge, what are we doing?" he asked suddenly, backing away from her.

"I don't know, but I like it. And part of me senses that you do too."

Shadow glanced downwards. He didn't know what to say. This was happening way to fast, even for him. "I..."

"You're afraid of a relationship, aren't you? You have commitment issues."

"R-relationship! What? No way!" The calm hedgehog began to uncharacteristically freak out.

"Shadow, relax. I'm no Amy. We don't have to jump into this right away. I'd rather take it slow, too. That way.."

"What?"

"Oh, uhm, nothing," said Rouge, shying away from him. "Well, it's getting kind of late, and I do have work tomorrow. I had a lot of fun, Shadow, but do you think you can take me home?"

"Sure, just one thing," said Shadow, surprising Rouge a little.

"Hmm?"

"Let's try that kissing thing one more time."

The two wasted no more words as they pressed against each other, locking lips in another heated battle for dominance. They were so engaged in the kissing that they lost their balance and fell into the sand. Salty waves of ocean crashed over them. After about five minutes, they decided to call it quits.

"Okay, so NOW we're going to take it slow, right?"

"Sure. Oh, and Rouge? Let's keep this night a secret, yes? I have a reputation to maintain."

The bat giggled. Shadow still retained his cocky sense of humor with her after their somewhat-romantic escapade of a night. "Sure. Now take me home."

Shadow chaos-controlled himself and Rouge to the balcony of her apartment. Though nowhere as beautiful as the night time ocean, she had an amazing view of the city from her balcony. All of the lights sparkled on the horizon, lighting up the area brightly.

Rouge used a key that she pulled from literally nowhere to unlock her door. She took one step in before turning towards Shadow. "Aren't you going to give me a good night kiss?"

"Hell no. That's really cheesy. And I've had enough of _that_ for today, trust me."

Rouge busted into a fit of laughter. "Oh, Shadow. Don't ever change. Please." She blew him a kiss and shut the door behind her for the night.

Shadow turned away and looked into the facets of the green emerald he was holding in his hands. As he observed his reflection he noticed that he was... smiling! _He was smiling_. Shadow immediately grimaced and returned to his usual empty expression. Shadow the badass hedgehog does not smile.

He stole a sidelong glance at his _special_friend's doorway before teleporting away. He had a feeling that with her around, his reputation was headed south.

Even thought he didn't want to admit it... _it would be worth it._


End file.
